Gaza Aid Tragedy and Al-Aqsa Visit by Israeli Minister Trigger Global Outrage

Report by “Safarti Tarjuman” International News Desk

JERUSALEM / GAZA — At least 27 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces on Sunday while attempting to access food aid in southern Gaza, a devastating development that has drawn sharp international condemnation. The tragedy comes amid escalating tensions sparked by Israeli Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s highly controversial visit to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem.

According to health officials in Gaza, the fatalities occurred near a humanitarian aid distribution point operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a U.S.-backed relief organization. Witnesses described the gunfire as indiscriminate, saying Israeli troops opened fire on unarmed civilians desperate for food.

“I couldn’t stop to help—there were bullets everywhere,” said Yousef Abed, a survivor of the attack. “People were shot while holding empty containers.”

Six additional people reportedly died from starvation or malnutrition on the same day, bringing Gaza’s hunger-related death toll to 175, including 93 children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. The United Nations has stated that over 1,400 people have been killed since May 27 while trying to access humanitarian aid across the enclave.

Al-Aqsa Mosque Visit Deepens Crisis

The deadly aid incident coincided with a politically explosive moment: Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, leading a group of over 1,200 individuals under heavy Israeli military protection. It marked the first public prayer by an Israeli minister at the revered Islamic site—widely regarded as the third holiest in Islam and the holiest site in Judaism, known to Jews as the Temple Mount.

Ben-Gvir’s presence violated the long-standing status quo agreement, which permits Jewish visits but not religious rituals at the site, overseen by Jordan under a decades-old custodianship.

“A message must be sent: to ensure we conquer all of Gaza and declare full sovereignty,” Ben-Gvir said in a post on X (formerly Twitter), adding, “Only then will we return the hostages and win this war.”

International Response and Humanitarian Alarm

The Jordanian government condemned the visit as a “blatant provocation” and called for international action to prevent further escalation. Regional leaders and rights organizations have slammed the incident as a “deliberate attempt to ignite religious tensions.”

Humanitarian agencies, including the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), say Gaza is facing a full-scale famine driven by restricted aid access and collapsing healthcare infrastructure.

> “We urgently need sustained and unrestricted aid access to prevent further catastrophe,” said Hisham Mhanna, spokesperson for the **International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)**. “Without nutrition, even the best hospitals can’t save lives.”

In a separate attack Sunday, the Palestinian Red Crescent reported that its headquarters in Khan Younis was bombed by Israeli forces, killing one staff member and injuring three others. Another Israeli airstrike hit a school-turned-shelter in the same area, killing at least two civilians.

The compounded crises have increased calls for an immediate ceasefire and a return to meaningful diplomacy. More than 60,800 Palestinians have reportedly been killed since Israel launched its military campaign in response to the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack, which resulted in 1,200 Israeli deaths.

In the occupied West Bank, thousands took to the streets on Sunday in solidarity with Gaza, holding up images of starving children and Palestinians killed in Israeli custody.

With international condemnation intensifying and regional anger mounting, the dual flashpoints—the humanitarian aid killings and Ben-Gvir’s Al-Aqsa visit—have thrust the Middle East into renewed volatility. Diplomats and humanitarian groups are calling for urgent international intervention to prevent the situation from spiraling further into catastrophe.

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